Griddle plate assembly and method of making same



Ap 28, 1964 J. A. JARMUTH ETAL 3,130,664

GRIDDLE PLATE ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed Oct. 13, 1960 INVENTORS JACK A JARMUTH DONALD A. WELLS FIC.2

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,130,664 GRIDDLE PLATE ASSEMBLY AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Jack A. Jarmuth, San Francisco, and Donald A. Wells,

Lafayette, Calif., assignors to Wells Manufacturing Company, San Francisco, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Oct. 13, 1960, Ser. No. 62,366 17 Claims. (Cl. 99-425) This invention relates to griddle plate assemblies for electric griddles and the like and to a method of fabricating such griddle plate assemblies.

It is a principal object of this invention to provide griddle plate assemblies and a method of making such assemblies whereby better griddle plate assemblies may be produced than known heretofore.

It is another principal object of the invention to provide a method whereby such assemblies can be produced more efiiciently than it was possible to produce griddle plate assemblies heretofore.

' It is another principal object of this invention to provide a griddle plate assembly and a methodof producing same which will insure that hot greases on the griddle plate cannot escape under the griddle plate to foul or short circuit the griddle plate heating equipment.

It is another object of the invention to provide such griddle plate assemblies in which the griddle plate is provided with walls surrounding its cooking surface and extending generally perpendicular thereto above the cooking surface, thereby facilitating use of the griddle on which the assembly is used.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a griddle plate assembly having a waste receiving well along one edge of the griddle plate into which grease and food fragments may be scraped from the griddle plate.

It is another object of the invention to provide such a griddle plate assembly in which the side walls surround the griddle plate and the Waste receiving well and in which the side walls are provided with an outwardly extending flange and downwardly extending lip facilitating the mounting of the assembly in a machine while preventing the flow of grease around the sides of the assembly.

It is another object of the invention to provide a griddle plate assembly having better thermal conductivity characteristics than such assemblies used heretofore.

It is a specific object of the invention to provide a griddle plate assembly and method of fabricating same whereby the side walls and waste well of the assembly may be formed in a single stamping operation, and the stamping thus formed may be attached to a relatively heavy gauge griddle plate very efficiently.

It is another object of the invention to provide a griddle plate assembly and method of fabricating same in which the means employed for attaching the stamping to the griddle plate also serve as efficient means for attaching electrical heating elements to the griddle plate assembly. It is another object of the invention to provide a method for attaching the stamping to the griddle plate which is i very effective in maintaining strong and heat conductive attachment between a relatively light gauge stamping and the heavy gauge griddle plate even when substantial temperature. gradients are maintained across the assembly.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following description read in conjunction with the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a griddle plate assembly constructed in accordance with this invention;

'FIG. 2 is a plan view of the bottom of the griddle plate assembly of FIG. 1 showing electrical heating elements attached thereto, and

FIG. 3 is a crosssectional view of the apparatus of FIG. 2 taken along the plane and in the direction indicated by the line and the arrows at 33 in FIG. 2.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the griddle plate assembly illustrated therein comprises a heavy gauge griddle plate Ill which is preferably about one-half inch thick and a light gauge tray 12 supporting the griddle plate 10 and preferably constructed of stainless steel of a thickness of about 16 gauge.

The tray 12 is formed of a continuous sheet of stainless steel which is die-stamped into the shape illustrated in FIG. 1 where the tray has a continuous bottom portion 14 underlying the griddle plate 10 with a waste receiving well 16 at one edge of the bottom portion 14 and positioned to receive grease and food particles scraped from one edge of the griddle plate 10. A waste removal opening 18 is provided in the bottom of the well portion 16, and the bottom portion 14 and well portion 16 are surrounded by side walls 20 which extend generally perpendicular to the top surface of the griddle plate 10. The stamped tray 12 thus provides complete bottom enclosure for the griddle plate 19 with the sole aperture in the tray being the opening 18 through which waste, greases and the like may be passed to a suitable receptacle.

The side wall portions 20 of the tray 12 are provided with an outwardly extending flange 22 at the top thereof having a downwardly extending lip 24 on its outer edge. The flange 22 and lip 24 permit the griddle plate assembly to be mounted upon an upwardly extending lip around a mouth in a suitable housing so that the flange 22 and lip 24 will prevent egress of grease into the housing. In the alternative, the assembly may be mounted in such a mouth or in some other suitable manner directly on a table top. This mounting may be aided by stud screws 25 welded to the assembly at the under side of the flange 22 for instance as indicated in FIG. 2.

The griddle plate 10 is attached to the tray 12 by a perimeter weld 26 extending around the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 adjacent to the peripheral edge of the griddle plate 10. The perimeter weld 26 serves to securely attach the tray 12 to the griddle plate 10 and provides good heat conduction where cold spots might otherwise be present, and the thermal expansion of the light gauge tray 12 as the perimeter weld 26 is being made causes the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 to be maintained under substantial tension and tightly clamped to the griddle plate 10 upon cooling of the tray 12 after completing the peripheral weld 26. A plurality of stud screws 28 are welded to the griddle plate 10 through the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 at a plurality of points distributed over the area of the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 as illustrated in FIG. 2. The bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 is preferably maintained under substantial pressure against the griddle plate 10 while the said screws 28 are being welded to the plate 10; in this way, good heat conduction is insured between the bottom portion 14 and the plate 10, and the said screws 28 are firmly welded in place. A plurality of electrical heating elements 30 are clamped to the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 by brackets 32 which are provided with cross bars 34 (see FIG. 3) and are held tightly against the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 by nuts 36 on the stud screws 28. Additional stud screws or spot Welds may be provided over the area of the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 for attaching the bottom portion 14 to the plate 10; suitable additional stud screws 38 are illustrated in FIG. 2 and may be employed for attaching a thermostat to the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12.

The stud screws 28 welded to the plate 10 through the bottom portion 14 of the tray provide efiicient means for attaching the electrical heating element 30 to the griddle plate assembly and also provide secure attachment of the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 to the griddle plate 10 so that the bottom portion 14 will not buckle when the griddle plate assembly is subjected to intense heat.

In griddle plate assemblies which are to be used on griddles employing a gas flame for heating the griddle plate, the stud screws 28 may be replaced by spot welds suitably distributed over the area of the bottom portion 14, and in situations where a very good grease-tight weld 26 is formed around the perimeter of the plate 10, the welded stud screws 28 may be replaced by stud screws threaded into holes tapped in the bottom of the griddle plate 10. However, it is much more desirable to employ spot welds or stud screws welded to the griddle plate than to perforate the plate since it is then unnecessary to make the weld 26 grease tight to avoid grease leakage through the assembly and since it is easier to weld the stud screws 28 to the plate 10 than it is to form tapped holes in the underside of the plate 10 and thread the stud screws thereinto.

It has been found that the griddle plate assemblies illustrated herein may be produced at substantially less than one-half the cost heretofore involved in producing a good griddle plate assembly, a substantial amount of the cost saving resulting from the elimination of labor necessary to provide a completely grease-tight weld between the side walls and the griddle plate 10. The method of constructing the griddle plate assembly by stamping the tray 12 out of a continuous sheet of steel followed by attaching the tray 12 to the plate 10 by the Welded stud screws 28 or spot welds while maintaining the bottom portion of the tray 12 and the griddle plate 10 firmly clamped together thus provides a very eflicient process for constructing the griddle plate assemblies at less expense while producing a griddle plate assembly which is better than similar assemblies known heretofore.

It has been found that the griddle plate assemblies described above have much better thermal conductivity properties than similar griddle plate assemblies known heretofore. The construction of the griddle plate assembly as described herein tends to reduce hot spots on the cooking surface of the griddle plate which may be caused by lack of uniformity in the application of heat to the bottom portion 14 of tray 12, etc.

Thus it has been found that temperature gradients on the order of less than 20 F. are encountered on the cooking surface of the griddle plate 10, whereas similar griddle plate assemblies constructed heretofore exhibited temperature gradients on the order of 70 F. and higher.

The griddle plate assemblies constructed in accordance with this invention provide complete insulation of the griddle heating equipment from hot greases on the cooking surface of the griddle plate, since the tray 12 provides a continuous grease impervious wall separating the plate 10 from the heating means. The provision of the flange 22 and lip 24 on the plate 10 permits the mounting of the griddle plate assembly in a suitable housing in which grease entry into the housing around the tray 12 is eliminated. All of the waste grease and food particles accumulated on the cooking surface of the griddle plate 10 may be scraped into the well 16 and delivered through the aperture 18 to a suitable waste collecting container.

The stud screws 28 afiirmatively prevent buckling of the bottom portion 14 of the tray 12 when the assembly is subjected to intense heat, and the clamping of the heating element 30 against the bottom portion 14 by the nuts 36 provides additional buckling prevention.

While one specific embodiment of this invention has been illustrated herein, it is obvious that many modifications in the construction and arrangement of parts and the method steps may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. A griddle plate assembly comprising a tray having a continuous bottom portion and a plurality of side wall portions integrally formed with said bottom portion and 4 extending generally perpendicular therefrom, a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion of said tray and less than the height of said wall portions and mounted on said bottom portion with its edges adjacent to said side wall portions, and means for attaching said griddle plate to said tray comprising welds connecting said griddle plate to said bottom portion of said tray at a plurality of points distributed over the area of said bottom portion.

2. A griddle plate assembly comprising a tray having a continuous bottom portion, a well portion adjacent to said bottom portion and a plurality of side Wall portions integrally formed with and encircling said bottom and well portions and extending generally perpendicular therefrom, a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion of said tray and mounted on said bottom portion uncovering said well with one of the edges of said plate adjacent to said well and the remainder of its edges adjacent to said side wall portions, the height of said side wall portions being greater than said thickness of said griddle plate, and means for attaching said griddle plate to said tray comprising a plurality of studs distributed over the area of said bottom portion of said tray and Welded to said griddle plate through said bottom portion of said tray.

3. The griddle plate assembly of claim 2 in which said bottom portion of said tray is welded to said griddle plate along a closed path adjacent to the periphery of said griddle plate.

4. The griddle plate assembly of claim 2 in which said tray includes a flange portion integrally formed with said wall portions and extending outwardly therefrom adjacent to the top thereof and completely encircling said griddle plate, and a downwardly extending lip is provided on the outer edge of said flange portion.

5. A griddle plate assembly comprising a tray having a continuous bottom portion, a well portion along one edge of said bottom portion and a continuous side wall portion surrounding said bottom and well portions, said bottom, well and side wall portions being integrally formed together to define a pan having downward opening therethrough only in said well portion, a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than said bottom portion of said tray and mounted on said bottom portion with one of its edges adjacent said well portion and the remainder of its edges adjacent said side wall portions, and means for attaching said griddle plate to said tray comprising welds connecting said griddle plate to said bottom portion of said tray at a plurality of points ditsributed over the area of said bottom portion.

6. The griddle plate assembly of claim 5 in which said welds are formed by a plurality of studs distributed over the area of said bottom portion of said tray and welded to said griddle plate through said bottom portion with the free ends of said studs being threaded and supporting electrical heating elements against said bottom portion of said tray.

7. The griddle plate assembly of claim 5 in which said bottom portion of said tray is welded to said griddle plate along a closed path adjacent to the periphery of said griddle plate.

8. The griddle plate of claim 5 in which said tray includes a flange portion integrally formed with said wall portion and extending outwardly therefrom adjacent to the top thereof and completely encircling said griddle plate, and a downwardly extending lip is provided on the outer edge of said flange portion.

9. The method of fabricating a griddle plate assembly which comprises providing a tray having a bottom portion, a well adjacent to said bottom portion, and side wall portions formed integrally therewith and extending generally perpendicular thereto surrounding said well and bottom portions, providing a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said tray and having a shape to overlie said bottom portion with its edges abutting against said side walls, placing said griddle plate on said tray with the edges of said plate uncovering said well and abutting said side wall portions of said tray, and spot welding said bottom portion of said tray to said griddle plate at a plurality of points over the area of said bottom portion.

10. The method of claim 9 characterized further by the inclusion of the step of welding said bottom portion of said tray to said griddle plate among a continuous path adjacent to the edge of said plate prior to spot welding said bottom portion to said plate.

11. The method of fabricating a griddle plate assembly which comprises stamping a continuous sheet of metal to form a tray having a bottom portion, a well portion along one edge of said bottom portion, and a continuous side wall portion surrounding said bottom and well portions, placing on said bottom portion a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion with said plate covering said bottom portion and uncovering said well, welding said bottom portion of said tray to said plate along a closed path adjacent to the edges of said plate, and then spot welding said bottom portion to said plate at a plurality of points distributed over the area of said bottom portion inside of said closed path.

12. The method of claim 11 in which said first welding step is performed by welding said bottom portion to said plate in a local area progressively around said path while said plate and bottom portion are being heated by the welding process.

13. The method of claim 11 characterized further in that said stamping operation is performed so as to form an outwardly extending flange on the top of said wall portion with a downwardly extending lip on its outer edge, and an aperture through said tray at the bottom of said well portion.

14. The method of claim 11 in which said spot welding step is performed by welding threaded studs to said plate through said bottom section of said tray, and in which is included the subsequent step of attaching electrical heating elements to said assembly by clamping said heating elements on said assembly with nuts threaded onto said studs.

15. A griddle plate assembly comprising a tray having a continuous bottom portion and a plurality of side wall portions integrally formed with said bottom portion and extending generally perpendicular therefrom, a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion of said tray and mounted on said bottom portion with its edges adjacent to said side wall portions, the height of said side wall portions being greater than the thickness of said griddle plate, means for attaching said griddle plate to said tray comprising a plurality of threaded studs distributed over the area of said bottom portion of said tray and welded to said griddle plate through said bottom portion of said tray, and electrical heating elements supported against the side of said bottom portion of said tray opposite said griddle plate by nuts threaded onto said studs.

16. A griddle plate assembly comprising a tray having a continuous bottom portion and a plurality of side wall portions integrally formed with the bottom portion and surrounding said bottom portion and extending generally perpendicular therefrom, a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion of said tray and mounted on said bottom portion inside of said side wall portions, the height of said side wall portions being greater than the thickness of said griddle plate, means for attaching said griddle plate to said tray comprising a plurality of threaded studs distributed over the area of said bottom portion of said tray and welded to said griddle plate through said bottom portion of said tray and, an electrical heating element supported against the side of said bottom portion of said tray opposite said griddle plate by nuts threaded onto said studs.

17. The method of fabricating a griddle plate assembly comprising stamping a continuous sheet of metal to form a tray having a bottom portion, a well portion along one edge of said bottom portion, and a continu-' ous side wall portion surrounding said bottom and well portions, placing on said bottom portion a griddle plate having a thickness substantially greater than the thickness of said bottom portion with said plate covering the majority of the area of said bottom portion inside said side Wall portions and uncovering said well, welding said bottom portion of said tray to said plate along a closed path adjacent to the edges of said plate, and then spot welding said bottom portion of said plate at a plurality of points distributed over the area of said bottom portion inside of said closed path.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,615,686 Escholz Jan. 25, 1927 1,974,796 Davis Sept. 25, 1934 2,156,557 Wilson May 2, 1939 2,211,030 Rutenber Aug. 13, 1940 2,233,463 Wilson Mar. 4, 1941 2,351,130 Jones June 13, 1944 3,036,201 Libby May 22, 1962 FOREIGN PATENTS 245,331 Switzerland July 16, 1947 715,630 Germany Jan. 5, 1942 

1. A GRIDDLE PLATE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A TRAY HAVING A CONTINUOUS BOTTOM PORTION AND A PLURALITY OF SIDE WALL PORTIONS INTEGRALLY FORMED WITH SAID BOTTOM PORTION AND EXTENDING GENERALLY PERPENDICULAR THEREFROM, A GRIDDLE PLATE HAVING A THICKNESS SUBSTANTIALLY GREATER THAN THE THICKNESS OF SAID BOTTOM PORTION OF SAID TRAY AND LESS THAN THE HEIGHT OF SAID WALL PORTIONS AND MOUNTED ON SAID BOTTOM PORTION WITH ITS EDGES ADJACENT TO SAID SIDE WALL PORTIONS, AND MEANS FOR ATTACHING SAID GRIDDLE PLATE TO SAID TRAY COMPRISING WELDS CONNECTING SAID GRIDDLE PLATE TO SAID BOTTOM PORTION OF SAID TRAY AT A PLURALITY OF POINTS DISTRIBUTED OVER THE AREA OF SAID BOTTOM PORTION. 